UmpCrew

Comparison

UmpCrew vs HorizonWebRef.

Looking for a HorizonWebRef alternative for your baseball or softball league? Here's how the two compare on price, features, and who they're built for.

Pick UmpCrew if

You're a league commissioner, not an officials' association.

  • ✓Predictable flat pricing — no tier jumps
  • ✓Modern mobile app for umps
  • ✓Setup in 15 minutes, not a week

Pick HorizonWebRef if

You run an officials' association across multiple sports.

  • →Multi-sport officiating (baseball, basketball, soccer)
  • →You need official-pay tracking
  • →Existing officials' training portal integration

Side-by-side

Pricing data current as of April 2026 from each vendor's public site.

  UmpCrew HorizonWebRef
Starting price$149 / year$240 / year
Pricing modelFlat per leagueTiered seat blocks (30 → $3,450)
Free trial14 days, no cardLimited demo
Sports supportedBaseball & softballMulti-sport
SMS reminders✓ Included✓ Included
Native mobile appiOS + AndroidWeb-first
Fairness dashboard✓ Auto-suggest by game countReports
Official-pay tracking—✓
Setup time~15 minDays–weeks

Different audiences, different tools

HorizonWebRef is built for officials' associations — the groups that supply referees and umpires across a region, across multiple sports, to many leagues. They handle pay, training records, and certifications. UmpCrew is built for the league commissioner — the volunteer running one baseball or softball league who needs to get umps to the right field on time. Different buyer, different feature set, different price.

The pricing curve

HorizonWebRef's pricing climbs in tiers: $240/year for 30 users, then jumps to $320 at the next bracket, and continues stepping up to $3,450/year at the largest tier. For a league with 31 umpires, you'd pay the next tier's full rate even though you're barely over the previous one. UmpCrew avoids those step changes: $149/year covers 50 umpires, $299/year covers 150, and there's nothing in between.

Where HorizonWebRef is the better choice

You operate an officials' association that supplies umpires, refs, and judges across multiple sports to multiple leagues. You need to track pay, certifications, training. You have an existing infrastructure built around HorizonWebRef and the cost of switching is high. None of those are wrong reasons to stay.

Where UmpCrew is the better choice

You're a commissioner running one baseball or softball league. You care about getting umps notified, building fair crews, and stopping last-minute scrambles. You don't need pay tracking inside the same tool. You want a 15-minute setup, flat pricing, and a mobile app that umps actually use. That's our customer.

Common questions

How does HorizonWebRef pricing actually work?
HorizonWebRef starts at $240/year for 30 users. Beyond 30, you move into tiered blocks — roughly $320/year for the next bracket, climbing to over $3,000/year at the top tier. The pricing is officials-count-based and steps up in chunks rather than smoothly. UmpCrew is a flat $149/year for up to 50 umpires or $299/year for up to 150 — no tier jumps.
Is HorizonWebRef better-known among umpires?
HorizonWebRef is established in officials' associations and has been around longer. UmpCrew is newer (launched in 2026) and built for league commissioners, not officials' associations. The two serve different buyers — HorizonWebRef sells to the association running officials across sports; UmpCrew sells directly to the commissioner running one league.
Can I import data from HorizonWebRef?
Yes, via CSV. Export your schedule and roster to CSV from HorizonWebRef, then use UmpCrew's import dialog. Date, time, field, home, and away columns all map automatically. Set up takes about 20–30 minutes.
Does UmpCrew handle official-pay tracking?
No — UmpCrew is focused on scheduling and communication. We don't track payments to officials. If pay tracking is critical to your workflow, HorizonWebRef has that built in. We may add a lightweight version in the future, but it's not on the roadmap today.

Try the simpler tool.

14-day free trial, no credit card. Built for baseball and softball commissioners.

Start free trial Talk to us about switching